The Hindu            01.10.2013

2 bridges to make new ways across north Buckingham canal

For several years now, residents of Ezhil Nagar and its
neighbourhood, to avoid a detour, have risked walking on railway tracks
across north Buckingham canal to reach Nehru Nagar and other parts of
north Chennai.

What is hardly a 100-feet distance
across the north Buckingham canal translates to a nearly two km ride on
Tondiarpet Road. In a few months, residents can avoid the arduous and
hazardous routes as the Water Resources Department (WRD) is all set to
construct two single-lane bridges across the canal.

K.
Babu, a resident of Ezhil Nagar, said people of areas such as Ezhil
Nagar A and B Blocks, Satya Nagar and MGR Nagar found it easier to walk
on the tracks over the rail bridge to reach Nehru Nagar. However, many
of them have recently stopped taking the tracks as they fear being fined
by the railway police. The only other option is to wait amidst heavy
traffic on Tondiarpet Road for at least an hour to pass two level
crossings in Nehru Nagar and Ezhil Nagar.

Schoolchildren walk the 2 km distance to avoid waiting in traffic and then board a bus from Korukkupet, he added.

Residents
said the proposed bridge would help them reach the Vaidyanathan bridge
in Tondiarpet in 15 minutes. A. Ramesh, another resident of Ezhil Nagar,
said the WRD must ensure the bridge is wide enough for ambulances to
move through. “We could travel to Tiruvottiyur, Ennore or Tondiarpet
through the bridge and Nehru Nagar Street,” he said.

Officials
of the WRD said the 32-metre-long and 2.5-metre-wide bridge would be
constructed across the canal at a cost of Rs. 70 lakh under the JNNURM.
The delay in obtaining sanction for the revised detailed project report
from the Centre had pushed the project deadline to this year-end, they
said.

The residents of fishing hamlets in Ennore too
would soon be benefitted from a 40-metre-long and 2.5-metre-wide bridge
across the Buckingham canal along Kattukuppam and Kadavukarangkuppam.
Residents of fishing hamlets said they currently use a temporary wooden
bridge to reach the backwaters of Ennore creek for fishing. Whenever the
wooden structure gets damaged or is submerged during rains, they are
unable to earn their livelihood. The new bridge worth Rs. 1 crore would
help them carry fishing materials across, they said.